We appreciate The Denver Post highlighting Social Security in its editorial, as well as Medicare on April 15. For more than 50 years, AARP has fought to strengthen Medicare and Social Security for today’s seniors and future generations. That’s why we launched “You’ve Earned a Say” this year to take the conversation about the future of Medicare and Social Security out from behind closed doors in Washington.

The editorial notes, “Even AARP … recently has come around on the need to adjust [Social Security] benefits in order to keep the program working.”

We want to be clear: Social Security must be put on stable financial ground, but we believe it should continue to guarantee that Americans who work and pay into the system receive benefits that keep up with inflation and last as long as they live.

We must protect benefits for those who count on them most, including spouses, families and the disabled. Social Security should be kept separate from the rest of the federal budget.

AARP has a long history of working for changes that have strengthened Medicare and Social Security for current seniors as well as for future generations. We’ve consistently said Medicare and Social Security face long-term financial challenges that need to be addressed, including the aging of the population, longer life expectancies, and rising health care costs.

The most important thing we can do to stabilize Medicare and Social Security for the long-term is to engage the American public in a national conversation.

We’ve already given Coloradans the chance to speak out around the state and have collected more than 3,000 survey responses. After all, Medicare and Social Security aren’t just line-items in a budget. Any changes will have a real impact in the lives of Coloradans.

Millions of Americans have worked hard and contributed to these programs — they deserve to know what changes politicians are putting on the table so they can have a voice in the debate.

Go to earnedasay.org to speak out and offer ideas to strengthen these programs.

There’s been way more than enough written about Donald Trump’s battle with kneeling football players — especially with a major crisis underway in Puerto Rico — but one thing really does bother me that’s been revealed during this brouhaha: the extent to which many Americans have accepted the anti-democratic and false equivalence of patriotism and the military.